Umesh Yadav has been a revelation in this IPL. On Friday, the senior India pacer became the Purple Cap holder for taking most wickets—eight—in three games for Kolkata Knight Riders so far. Yadav finished with his best IPL figures of 4-1-23-4 to bowl out Punjab Kings for 137 in 18.2 overs.
At the time of going to press, KKR were 73-4 in 10 overs with Andre Russell not out on 17. KKR were lucky to acquire Yadav at his base price of R2 crore. In the absence of Pat Cummins, Yadav has spearheaded the KKR bowling with excellence. He once again managed to strike in the first over of the innings, trapping Punjab Kings skipper Mayank Agarwal plumb in front of the wicket. However, Shikhar Dhawan and Bhanuka Rajapaksa kept the scoreboard ticking.
KKR’s Shivam Mavi was at the receiving end of some brutal treatment upon his introduction in the fourth over, but the young pacer also had the last laugh despite being hit for three consecutive sixes by Rajapaksa.Mavi’s short-of-the-length ball would have got the same treatment had Rajapaksa not mistimed it. Southee completed a well-anticipated catch, bringing an end to a thrilling nine-ball 31.
50 per cent crowd for matches from April 6
There was some more cheer for IPL fans as the Maharashtra government decided to increase the match capacity to 50 per cent from April 6.
Currently, the IPL matches at Wankhede Stadium, Brabourne Stadium, DY Patil Stadium and the Maharashtra Cricket Association stadium are being played at
25 per cent capacity.
The decision comes after the Maharashtra government on Thursday decided to do away with most of the COVID-19 regulations, including the mandatory wearing of masks. “We have just now received the notification from the state government to increase the crowd capacity from 25 per cent to 50 per cent. Since the tickets up to April 5 are already sold out, we have decided to increase the capacity from April 6 onwards,” an MCA official told mid-day.
